Meeting Abstract
As anthropogenic global change increases, one aspect of urbanization that affects many species is artificial light at night (ALAN). ALAN is known to have serious implications for nocturnal taxa, but we do not have a good understanding of how it affects many diurnal animals, including reptiles. While anole lizards are considered to be strongly diurnal and adapted to specific photic environments, many anole species thrive in human-altered habitats where ALAN is prevalent. Previous research exposing brown anoles (Anolis sagrei) to ALAN in the lab shows that ALAN can induce earlier reproduction and increase growth and reproductive output. Research in the field shows that exposure to ALAN can increase wariness and decrease endurance. To illuminate the impacts of ALAN in a real-world scenario, we conducted a field experiment introducing a common form of ALAN, landscape lighting, into a previously unlighted habitat within an urban matrix. Over a two-month period, we monitored sleeping perches, survival, growth, body condition, and physiology of brown anoles and crested anoles (Anolis cristatellus). We found that anoles did not avoid artificially lighted areas and did experience higher light levels at sleeping perches in ALAN treatments. Anoles sleeping in artificially lighted locations had lower blood glucose. ALAN exposure also reduced follicle size in females and altered egg mass, suggesting impacts on energy availability. As urban and human-developed areas continue to grow, ALAN will increasingly affect both urban exploiters and urban-tolerant organisms. Considering the ecological impacts of ALAN as an evolutionarily novel disturbance is important to future studies of urban ecology and conservation.
